REVIEW: Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins

Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins

Published: May 1st, 2012 | Harper Teen
Age: YA Paranormal
Pages: 447
Acquired: Borrowed
Format: ARC

Overall: ½
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Embrace the Forbidden

What if there were teens whose lives literally depended on being bad influences?
This is the reality for sons and daughters of fallen angels.
Tenderhearted Southern girl Anna Whitt was born with the sixth sense to see and feel emotions of other people. She’s aware of a struggle within herself, an inexplicable pull toward danger, but Anna, the ultimate good girl, has always had the advantage of her angel side to balance the darkness within. It isn’t until she turns sixteen and meets the alluring Kaidan Rowe that she discovers her terrifying heritage and her willpower is put to the test. He’s the boy your daddy warned you about. If only someone had warned Anna.
Forced to face her destiny, will Anna embrace her halo or her horns?

My Thoughts:
Anna is a girl who has lived her life being the good girl, ignoring any pull toward the influence of drugs and alcohol, no matter how strong they are. And they are strong. It isn't until she meets Kaidan Rowe that she has no idea why she feels so strongly. And that her pull isn't only a struggle, it's a necessity for what she is.

There was so much about Sweet Evil that I absolutely loved. The book borders on mature YA, but enough that it leaves you breathless and wanting more. Kaidan especially. He's an evil boy with too much life experience that you kind of feel bad for him. And then he does something that makes you want to throw caution to the wind and just enjoy whatever ride he throws you on. At times I was just sure Anna would do just that and maybe Kaidan would let her. I was always surprised with what the did and didn't do.

The romance in this book is a sure winner. It's hot and yummy. Even though Anna is on the edge of naive, she still manages to keep the romance and heat alive though at times riding on Kaidan's tail.
The action and adventures in this book are actually heart-pounding and definitely kept my interest until more of Anna and Kaidan time. I won't lie however, the times when Anna visits her dad, I was bored that I probably didn't register a lot of what he said like I should. It was important to the book, but I felt like that could have been written better.

I loved Anna's aunt and her friends, they had significant parts to this book and I loved every moment with them.
There's a possibility for a love triangle and I know a lot of people hate them, but I kind of enjoy them. And the possible guy, I liked him too. At times even more than Kaidan. No matter how sexy he is, he didn't always have to be an ass.

I'm not usually a fan of angel/demon/nephilim books, but I really enjoyed this. I seriously hope the 2nd book gets picked up for publication! Hey, HarperTeen, Simon & Schuster, Poppy, SOMEONE.... PICK IT UP!!!

Plot: ½
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Cover: (I don't understand it...?)

Author Info:
Wendy Higgins wrote her first book when she was five, titled The Day the Whole Class got the Chickenpox and even illustrated it herself with desks and stick-figure students. She made several copies and went door-to-door selling them to neighbors at $5 a pop. She dabbled in short stories and book ideas all throughout her school years, but stopped after college. She received a Bachelor's in Creative Writing from George Mason University. Sweet Evil is Higgin's first published novel.
More on her: website | goodreads | twitter

Review: Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

Under the Never sky by Veronica Rossi

Published: January 3rd, 2012 | HarperCollins
Format: Kindle
Genre: YA Dystopian
Overall: ½

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Since she'd been on the outside, she'd survived an Aether storm, she'd had a knife held to her throat, and she'd seen men murdered. This was worse.
Exiled from her home, the enclosed city of Reverie, Aria knows her chances of surviving in the outer wasteland - known as The Death Shop - are slim. If the cannibals don't get her, the violent, electrified energy storms will. She's been taught that the very air she breathes can kill her. Then Aria meets an Outsider named Perry. He's wild - a savage - and her only hope of staying alive.
A hunter for his tribe in a merciless landscape, Perry views Aria as sheltered and fragile - everything he would expect from a Dweller. But he needs Aria's help too; she alone holds the key to his redemption. Opposites in nearly every way, Aria and Perry must accept each other to survive. Their unlikely alliance forges a bond that will determine the fate of all who live under the never sky.

My thoughts:
I've said it before and I'll say it again, dystopian books are not usually my cup of tea, but I absolutely loved this book. Maybe it was the Aether, living in pods in outer space, the names, the journey, the romance, the fight and drive of the characters... I don't know what it was, but I loved it.

Aria has been told her whole life that living on the "outside" would kill her but when she is kicked from the only home she knows, she's scared half to death and has no other option but to die... Until she realizes that she has two other options, fight and live. She meets Perry who she believes is the savage who caused her to lose her home and possibly her mother. Together they make the treacherous journey to a place that is said to hold the promise of answers for both of them. Where she can find her mother and he can find his nephew.

Every thing that happens along the way kept me on the edge of my seat and waiting for what would happen next, who or what would come along. I loved and adored the way Aria always stood up for herself, even though she'd never had to endure such physical demands of being on the outside. She learned how to use a bow and arrow quickly, was able to stretch her senses to their limit and found ways to tolerate Perry to possibly liking him.

Perry won me over,  I loved him, though I kept thinking how they both must stink incredibly. (I'm just that kind of person. lol.)

Aria was my kind of girl, a singer, a fighter, not taking shit from people. I adored her!

Along the way they meet a boy, Cinder (who proved to be useful), I personally was annoyed with him and wished they'd have left him behind. I may sound heartless but he reminded me of a little boy I knew who never spoke and just follows you around in an eerie way.

Once the duo make it to the place the believe will give them the answers they need, I felt the book kind slowed down for me.

The best parts was the romance and their ability to never lose sight of what their mission was, fighting.
I can't wait to read the next book in the series, Through the Ever Night, expected out in January of next year.

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Author Info:
Veronica Rossi was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Growing up, she lived in several countries and cities around the world, finally settling in Northern California with her husband and two sons. She completed undergraduate studies at UCLA and then went on to study fine art at the California College of the Arts in San Francisco. When not writing or painting, she chases after her boys, who make her laugh every day, and who teach her about love that's a million gazillion times bigger than the ocean. UNDER THE NEVER SKY is her first novel.
More on her: website | twitter | facebook | goodreads